About the Waimakariri District Council Cemeteries

are well maintained so they are peaceful places for family and friends

are open to visitors 365 days a year during daylight hours

are available to all persons, not just residents of the district. There are no additional fees for non-Waimakariri residents

do not have any facilities for the interment of pets, or the ashes of pets, or the placement of memorials for pets.

Enquiries regarding burials or purchase of plots should be directed to the appropriate service centre. There
are a number of church cemeteries throughout the district. Burial
records for church cemeteries are held by the respective churches.

Double-depth burials are not accepted at Rangiora and Kaiapoi
cemeteries due to the nature of the ground (shingle at Rangiora and fine
silt at Kaiapoi). Where plots have already been reserved at Kaiapoi for
double-depth burials these will be permitted.

Burials may be carried out between the hours of 9 am and 3.30 pm Monday to Friday, and until 12 noon on Saturdays during the winter. During the summer burial hours are extended to 4 pm Monday to Friday.

Services Cemeteries

New
Zealand has specifically designated areas within public cemeteries, and
stand-alone individual cemeteries, for the interment of veterans,
irrespective of whether death was due to service or to natural causes.
These are called Services Cemeteries and there are now 184 of these
throughout New Zealand.

The Waimakariri District Council has Services Cemeteries at the Kaiapoi Public Cemetery and the Rangiora Lawn Cemetery.

Ex-service
personnel who have had war service, or service that is defined as
equivalent to war service, and their spouses/partners may be buried in a
Services Cemetery. Each person's eligibility for burial is confirmed by
the Council prior to the funeral booking being accepted.

Interment of Spouse/Partner of a Veteran in a Services Cemetery

The
Burial and Cremation Act does permit the burial of the spouse/partner
of a veteran in a services cemetery. It is accepted custom and practice
that the interment of the spouse/partner must occur after the interment
of the eligible veteran. This practice has come about because if the
partner is interred first, there is no guarantee that the veteran will
be interred in the same plot upon the veteran's subsequent death. If the
personal circumstances of the veteran change, that person may never be
interred with the spouse in the services cemetery, resulting in a
partner occupying a plot that has been set aside for an eligible
veteran.

Guidance on the management of the Services Cemeteries in the
Waimakariri District is available from the Rangiora RSA, phone 03 313
7123.

Headstones and Memorials

One headstone or memorial that meets the required specifications, is permitted on each plot

A
Veterans Affairs plaque may be installed next to a headstone for
returned service persons interred in areas outside the services cemetery
area

Headstones or memorials must be installed by an approved Monumental Mason or Stone Mason or the Council’s contractor

Council permission must be obtained prior to the removal of any headstone or memorial from a Council cemetery.

Cemetery Maintenance

The
Council's cemetery services are delivered by the Council’s Parks and
Recreation Unit with administration services managed by Customer
Services. Cemetery maintenance and burial services are delivered under
contract; all graves, including ashes graves, must be prepared by the
Council’s contractor. Ashes may not be scattered at the Council
cemeteries or at any public park or reserve.

The family of the
deceased are responsible for maintaining the memorial in good condition.
The Council does not accept responsibility for damage or vandalism to
monuments.

In order to maintain the overall cemetery environment
for the benefit of all users, grave memorabilia that does not comply
with the cemetery standards will be removed by the Council contractor.

Contact

For further information on cemeteries in the Waimakariri, please contact Customer Services.